The village of Anmore has been given a sharp rebuke from the Minister of Environment, and an extension of the deadline to complete a management plan for its liquid waste.
But that shouldn’t affect efforts to resolve the leaks of water contaminated with E coli and fecal coliform from a failing septic system above Eagle Mountain middle school, says Anmore’s chief administrative officer, Juli Halliwell.
Parents of students who attend the school, and residents of the nearby Anmore Green housing development, where the leaks are originating, aren’t so sure.
“I’m quite discouraged,” said Diane MacSporran, of Eagle Mountain's parent advisory council, after she and several other parents, along with about 50 to 60 residents of the community, attended a public information meeting June 20 to provide an update of the village's efforts to fix the problem.
MacSporran said while a document published by the village prior to the meeting painted an optimistic picture of progress, the reality is anything but.
“Everything is pending,” she said.
That impression was further bolstered by a letter dated May 16 from George Heyman, B.C.'s minister of environment, that rejected the liquid waste management plan (LWMP) the village was required to submit by April 30 to comply with a ministerial order. Heyman said the village’s plan didn’t fulfill several requirements of provincial guidelines, including having it prepared and signed by a qualified professional and undertaking public consultation.
“I cannot approve this LWMP as drafted without substantial revisions,” wrote Heyman. “I would strongly advise the village to have a qualified professional prepare and sign the LWMP, to consult ministry staff in preparing the plan and undertake public consultation about the plan.”
Heyman then extended the deadline for the village to complete the plan to Dec. 31. That’s more than two years after the leaks of contaminated water were detected at the base of a hillside next to the middle school.
Halliwell said the village’s update document, published on its website June 3 and indicating the LWMP was complete, was already written prior to the minister’s letter. She said the plan had been prepared by a registered engineer “in good standing who has experience designing sanitary systems, as well as other relevant planning and design experience.”
Halliwell added the village would follow up with the ministry about its other concerns, and a plan for public consultation is being formulated. She said the additional requirements should not hinder resolution of the septic leaks.
“There should be no domino effect," she told The Tri-City News.
Brandie Roberts, the vice-president of Anmore Green Estates' strata council, said the village’s update document was “simply a continuation of the misdirection and perception of progress.”
In a letter sent to Heyman, Roberts said the village is also playing fast and loose with its assertion that residents of the 51-unit housing complex have agreed to pay the full costs of a sewer connection to a nearby hookup in Port Moody, including taking full responsibility for municipal-wide costs of membership to the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Discharge District (GVS&DD).
“This is absolutely incorrect,” Roberts said. “Placing municipal wide fees onto 51 families, doubling our property taxes, is not reasonable, fair or equitable.”
Those fees, according to Anmore’s document, are estimated to be $59,479 this year, rising to $145,339 by 2023; and those are in addition to the estimated $250,000 it will cost to complete the hookup.
Meanwhile, MacSporran said parents of kids attending Eagle Mountain are feeling caught in the middle. She said as the dispute trudges towards the possibility of extending into a third year, some students will have never been able to play on the hillside that has been closed off by heavy steel fences and warning signs since Dec. 23, 2017.
“It’s just become part of our furniture,” she said of the blue barrier and bright yellow signs, adding they’ll continue to be in place unless the sides can get together and work through their differences.
Otherwise, she added, “The only thing that is going to get people’s attention is if a child gets sick.”
